Pompeii (with Rebecca)

photo credit: Rebecca!

(Naples, day 1 here)

the next day started bright and early with fresh cornetti and fruit dropped off by our AirBnB host, so we could enjoy breakfast on the balcony. pretty incredible weather for late October! 

unfortunately, the next part of the morning was not quite as idyllic. we planned to take the regional train to Pompeii ... and so had pretty much the entire population of Naples. we crammed on the train, shoulder to shoulder, back to back, with sweaty strangers, trying to keep hands on the stroller and wearing our backpacks on the front to discourage pickpockets. with various delays and inexplicable stops along the line, it took over an hour for us to arrive. finally, we arrived at our stop and tumbled out, grateful to be breathing the fresh air! 

fueling up before getting slathered in sunscreen

the entrance to the excavation site

Greta stealing a page from the other tourists' playbook

last year, we had visited the ancient ruins of Ostia Antica near Rome twice (read about it here and here), so I wasn't sure how different Pompeii would be. the answer is: much! it's not only significantly larger, but also better preserved and more developed. the surrounding landscape is stunning, too, with Vesuvius presiding in the background. I'm so glad we didn't attempt a visit here last year, though: it's impossible to take a stroller (just check out those original basalt roads), and both times we went to Ostia last year, Greta declared it her "yuckiest worst place of all". today, however, the girls dubbed themselves explorers, climbed everything they were permitted to climb, and played in the dirt like it was their job. 

the roads were built precisely to accommodate the standard width chariot axle

the OG buffet

I gave up on trying to keep Cece clean -- the dust was ubiquitous! plus, every time we stopped to look at something, she would plop down in the dirt to sculpt a “volcano” out of gravel.

taking a break in the shade of the courtyard outside the baths, where Pompeiians would do calisthenics

inside the baths -- those niches are lockers. (also, please note that audioguides are 100% the ticket to keeping small kids occupied at a historic site -- even if they never listen to the recordings at the designated spot.)

the courtyard of the massive House of the Faun (with a replica of the original bronze statue now housed in Naples)

"would you like fries with that?"

photo courtesy of Greta -- Cece wanted no part of this

Christmas card 2019? (fruit snacks may or may not have been used as bribery)

towards the end of our day, we paid our respects at the memorial garden. we were all intrigued and sobered by the plaster casts of human and animal victims, created by cavities left in the ash and then later filled in with plaster in the 19th century. Greta had lots of questions about what happened. it was tricky to find the right balance in explaining the tragedy honestly without provoking too much anxiety in my sensitive girl.

walking down to the memorial garden

more casts and artifacts

poor pup

Mt. Vesuvius presiding over the deceptively pastoral scene

finally, it was time to embark on the hot, pungent trip back to Naples. Pompeii was definitely worth the visit!

buonasera, Pompeii

done for the day

it got us where we needed to go, but we were not sad to say goodbye to the overcrowded Circumvesuviana regional train

back in Naples, I had to surreptitiously snap a photo of this woman who could easily have been any self-respecting yinzer grandma sporting her black and gold to go dahntahn for the Stillers game n'at (yinzer = a Pittsburgh native). please note she is actively smoking a cigarette inside the train station and no one is batting an eye.